Frankenstein: Victor’s Selfishness Vs. Creature’s Struggle

The True Form of Evil

Violence alone is not evil, but the inability to own up to one’s misdoings is the true form of evil. For instance, a murderer who owns up to one’s mistake may earn a second chance, but a murderer who runs will never earn that second chance. This is the case for Victor Frankenstein in Mary Shelley’s novel Frankenstein, who runs away from his monster creation, which causes the start of his downfall. Although the monster has the physical features of a typical monster, Victor Frankenstein is the real monster due to his selfish nature and fate, both of which influence his actions and decisions, ultimately attracting evil to both him and his family.

Victor's Selfish Ambitions

Despite the determination and hard work put in to achieve his goal of creating a living creature, Victor Frankenstein’s selfishness leads him to be the true monster because it influences the immoral purpose and decisions he makes regarding his creation. As Frankenstein displays his excitement towards his new project, he states, “A new species would bless me as its creator and source; many happy and excellent natures would owe their being to me.” Victor’s purpose behind his creation is to fulfill his desire to earn recognition as being the leader over someone else.

Victor is a college student, and his source of knowledge stems from his professors. However, Victor wants to become that source of knowledge for someone else, but instead of earning this privilege, he inorganically forces it by creating another form of life, which he expects to have full control over. This selfish desire for power stems from Victor’s anti-hero characteristics, such as being alienated and alone, allowing him to fully dedicate himself to achieving his goal without any distractions. Victor’s decision to form life like God for a selfish desire exemplifies the flaws of a real monster.

Selfishness is once again the main influence on Victor’s decisions regarding his creation. Not only does his purpose to create his creation stem from his own selfishness, but so do his decisions after he realizes the monster he has created. After seeing his creation for the first time, Victor demonstrates his true self when he exclaims, “Unable to endure the aspect of the being I had created, I rushed out of the room…” Victor’s decision to run away from his mistake portrays his sense of selfishness and short-thinking. It is human nature for one to become startled by unusual sights, but for one to not take responsibility for one’s actions is not human nature but a selfish nature. Selfishness can spring from short-thinking, which was the case for Victor.

Victor does not have the ability to determine how his actions may affect him or others in the long run. For instance, this decision to abandon his creation results in the deaths of Elizabeth, William, and Justine. This signifies how Victor not only affects himself through his selfishness but also greatly affects the lives of others. Because it influences the immoral purpose and decisions he makes regarding his creation, Victor Frankenstein’s selfishness proves him to be the true monster.

The Inevitability of Fate

Parallel to Victor’s selfish nature, Victor’s fate to attract evil is inevitable. Although some may interpret it as a supernatural force due to its lack of ability to be explained, fate can be the reason for many situations. Therefore, it is Victor’s fate to be the real monster. Victor knows right from wrong because he is very intelligent, yet his fate seems to say otherwise. This is shown when Victor is threatened to create a female monster when the monster says, “Have a care; I will work at your destruction, nor finish until I desolate your heart, so that you shall curse the hour of your birth’ Despite mourning from the deaths of his family members caused by his own creation, his fate leads him to almost making another one. Victor’s fate causes him to be put in situations where he is vulnerable. For instance, he feels empathy for the monster’s lack of companionship, allowing him to justify his initial decision, which may have led to an outcome of a much more malicious monster. Victor cannot escape this harsh reality because that is what fate is.

Also, fate derives from his past decisions. His main decision to create the monster is the reason why his fate is to be the reason for the deaths of his family members. Although the monster murders the family, it is Victor’s initial fault for creating it. This displays how one’s crucial actions can forever determine one’s fate. Although Victor eventually decides not to create a female monster, his fate, once again, leads to the monster’s decision to seek revenge on the wedding night.

This decision is described In a letter when the monster writes, “I WILL BE WITH YOU ON YOUR WEDDING-NIGHT!” This demonstrates how fate cannot be altered. Even though Victor makes the right decision, for the first time, to not create a second monster, his fate of being the reason for his family’s deaths is not changed. This fate leads to the death of Elizabeth, the final murder of the monster. The monster targeting Elizabeth, who was unarmed, unlike Victor, who had a gun, proves how, despite Victor’s effort to change his fate, it proved impossible. Therefore, it is inevitable fate that Victor attracts evil to both him and his family, demonstrating how he is the real monster.

The Creature's Pursuit of Acceptance

Unlike Victor’s selfishness and evil fate, the monster is courteous with an unfortunate fate. After realizing its outsider characteristics, it is determined to adapt to become a part of society and introduce itself to humans. This is only possible because of the monster’s courteous nature, which allows it to respectfully learn and adapt to humans. Through this process, it develops genuine emotions when the monster states, “The gentle manners and beauty of the cottagers greatly endeared them to me: when they were unhappy, I felt depressed; when they rejoiced, I sympathized in their joys.” With this courteous manner, the monster is able to gain the confidence to introduce itself to the humans. However, it is the monster’s unfortunate fate that reprimands him from his acceptance into society. It is solely his fate because he develops fluency in the language, an understanding of the culture, and even the ability to empathize with the humans. This is unlike Victor, who fails to have a courteous characteristic, causing him to fully exploit his evil fate.

The Human Nature of the Creature

Also, the monster has the ability to learn from others to become a better individual because of its courteous characteristics. For instance, the monster exclaims, “I shall relate events that impressed me with feelings which, from what I was, have made me what I am.” From learning the language to accepting its differences, the monster is directly impacted by its growth of knowledge gained through its ability to use its courtesy to learn while not disturbing others. By accepting itself for what it is, it has the ability to relate and sympathize with humans, allowing it to gain an important aspect of humans: sympathy. This signifies how the monster is truly a human underneath its abnormal skin, but due to its unfortunate fate, no one is able to fully realize it.

Societal Prejudice and Physical Appearance

With Victor’s selfish character and evil fate, it is clear who the real monster is. However, this brings to the question of why the monster has the physical characteristics of a monster when it is clearly not the real monster. This is done to parallel society’s prejudice based on looks. As simple as “Don’t judge a book by its cover,” many are taught at a young age not to judge or establish a belief based on simply what is seen. With the monster having monster-like physical features, it is utilized to prove how physical features do not always correlate with what society believes. Therefore, the monster is evidence of how society should not hold a prejudice based on looks.

References

• Shelley, M. (1818). Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus. London: Lackington, Hughes, Harding, Mavor & Jones.

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